Networks such as the Internet enable users all over the world to share information. For example, a Web-browser (e.g., Microsoft® Internet Explorer®) can retrieve web-pages from computers in almost any country. Such networks typically require network nodes (e.g., computers) to share a protocol that defines how the network nodes communicate. For example, computers on the Internet commonly communicate using HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol). HTTP defines messages that a client (e.g., a browser) can send to request information from a server. HTTP also defines messages that the server uses to send back the requested information. The HTTP messages typically travel through a number of intervening agents (e.g., proxies, routers, and firewalls) en route to their destinations.
As many “web-surfers” have experienced, obtaining information over a network is not always trouble-free. For example, information a user seeks may have been moved to a different computer. Additionally, the computer storing the information may be temporarily unable to provide the requested information, for example, when the computer receives too many requests at the same time.
A server can supply an error message for display by a browser or other client. For example, many Web users may have encountered a “404—File Not Found” error message during a browsing session. Unfortunately, error messages can be very technical and, therefore, have little meaning for novice computer users. Additionally, while network nodes in different countries share a communications protocol, computer users still speak a wide variety of languages. Thus, an error message in English is of little value to someone who only speaks French. A server administrator can configure a server to provide error messages in different languages.